{"product_id":"the-march-of-spare-time-the-problem-and-promise-of-leisure-in-the-great-depression-9780812238594","title":"The March of Spare Time: The Problem and Promise of Leisure in the Great Depression","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn The March of Spare Time  Susan Currell explores how and why leisure became an object of such intense interest  concern  and surveillance during the Great Depression. As Americans experienced record high levels of unemployment  leisure was thought by reformers  policy makers  social scientists  physicians  labor unions  and even artists to be both a cause of and a solution to societys most entrenched ills. Of all the problems that faced America in the 1930s  only leisure seemed to offer a panacea for the rest. The problem centered on divided opinions over what constituted proper versus improper use of leisure time. On the one hand  sociologists and reformers excoriated as improper such leisure activities as gambling  loafing  and drinking. On the other  the Works Progress Administration and the newly professionalized recreation experts promoted proper leisure activities such as reading  sports  and arts and crafts. Such attention gave rise to new ideas about how Americans should spend their free time to better themselves and their nation. These ideas were propagated in social science publications and proliferated into the wider cultural sphere. Films  fiction  and radio also engaged with new ideas about leisure  more extensively than has previously been recognized. In examining this wide spectrum of opinion  Currell offers the first full-scale account of the fears and hopes surrounding leisure in the 1930s  one that will be an important addition to the cultural history of the period.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45794320547893,"sku":"ByrdShop_0812238591","price":238.65,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780812238594.jpg?v=1784828843","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/the-march-of-spare-time-the-problem-and-promise-of-leisure-in-the-great-depression-9780812238594","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}